Florida's ban on cultivated meat challenged in federal court
TALLAHASSEE -- A California-based producer of lab-grown poultry filed a federal lawsuit Tuesday challenging a new Florida ban on selling or manufacturing "cultivated" meat.
UPSIDE Foods, Inc., contends, in part, that the law violates a constitutional prohibition on favoring in-state businesses over out-of-state competitors.
"We're not looking to replace conventional meat, which will always have a place on our tables," Uma Valeti, a cardiologist who founded UPSIDE in 2015, said during a conference call Tuesday with reporters. "We want to give consumers a choice, a choice so they can eat cultivated meat or conventional meat, any choice they can make in the future to keep up with the demand for meat that will double by 2050."
The lawsuit, filed in the federal Northern District of Florida, names as defendants state Agriculture Commissioner Wilton Simpson, Attorney General Ashley Moody and four state attorneys. Simpson, a key supporter of the law, called the lawsuit "ridiculous" and said "lab-grown meat is not proven to be safe enough for consumers."
"Food security is a matter of national security, and our farmers are the first line of defense," Simpson said in a statement. "As Florida's commissioner of agriculture, I will fight every day to protect a safe, affordable, and abundant food supply. States are the laboratory of democracy, and Florida has the right to not be a corporate guinea pig. Leave the Frankenmeat experiment to California."
The Legislature this year approved the ban as part of a broader Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services bill (SB 1084), which Gov. Ron DeSantis signed on May 1. The lawsuit said Florida became the first state to ban the manufacture, distribution and sale of cultivated meat.
"In doing so, Florida did not cite concerns that cultivated meat is less healthy or safe than conventional meat," said the lawsuit, filed by attorneys from the Institute for Justice legal organization. "Instead, Governor DeSantis announced that Florida was 'fighting back' against the 'authoritarian goals' of the 'global elite,' who he alleged would force consumers to eat cultivated meat. The governor also announced that the law was part of his administration's 'focus on investing in our local farmers and ranchers' and an effort to 'save our beef.'"
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration and the U.S. Department of Agriculture last year approved UPSIDE to manufacture and sell its products. Since then, the company has distributed cultivated chicken products, an alternative to plant-based meat alternatives, at restaurants and tasting events across the nation, including in Florida.
"Laws like this in Florida will absolutely make sure that this innovation will go outside the United States and make it very challenging for us to have food safety and food security in the future," Valeti said.
Paul Sherman, an Institute for Justice senior attorney, said a motion for a preliminary injunction is pending. If approved, a preliminary injunction could allow UPSIDE to sell products in Florida while the lawsuit moves forward.
